GATE IIT Admissions

Converted from page to post… its just the same old post I wrote a year back.. Just that, I didn’t like too many pages on the blog.

Hi,
This is my first post after joining IIT. I had given more than a couple of interviews and finally landed up in IIT Bombay with specialisation in EE . I am a basically a comp science guy and had appeared for GATE in comp science. You’ll be wondering why did I choose EE rather than CS. I’ll tell you the whole build up to how we both(EE & I) chose each other. Also, I am more than glad that I have discovered that programming is not everything after joining EE and thus being myself and not following the herd.

I’ll start this with the GATE preparations. Aspirants seeking guidelines for preparing GATE CS might like to look at my post “GATE CS Prepare”. I had done pretty well in the preparation of GATE and also featured in top 25 in 2 out of 4 tests that I appeared in GATEFORUM although I had not completed the syllabus. But I screwed up the GATE exam very badly and was able to score only 98.21 percentile(a pathetic rank of 747). The reasons of my failure were a plenty…..

1>I had prepared for GATE solving the previous year problems rather than reading the entire theory/content. I had approached GATE with a problem oriented frame of mind.

2> Did not take Software Engg and Web seriously as it was newly introduced to the syllabus.

3> Had not completed even half of the compiler design.

4> Due to some external factors couldn’t prepare well in last 15 days right before the exam.

But, never the matter, i didn’t loose heart and applied for IITs and IISc for both MS(R) and M.Tech in hope that I ‘ll crack the test and interview if given a chance as some of my friends, whom I used to beat them in the preparatory test to GATE had secured ranks in double figure. Believing in myself was important at the time of applying. I had prepared well for Engg Maths and Discrete Maths and those were the strong points for me. I also had very good exposure of C Programming and had always done better in these areas than my counterparts.

IITB – CS [25th may’09]

After a few frustrating weeks, I indeed got my first call that too from IITB for a test & interview for M.Tech in Computer Science. There were around 400+ guys competing for it. The questions in the test were basically from Discrete Maths especially Graph Theory ang logic, Analytical skills, C Programming and one problem on computer networks. There were in total 20 questioons divided into 4 areas- Maths, Analytical skills, Computer science, and C Programming. I cleared the test with good scores. There were around 60-80 candidates selected for the next round. I had appeared in GATE with a desire to do my Masters in Priority 1 -Wireless communication or Priority 2- AI and ML, Before the tests we were introduced to various Assistantships as well as projects by the faculties of CS. My old love wireless did feature in a couple of projects and I didn’t find them very innovative. So, I decide upon my second preference. We were supposed to give out our two preferences in order for the interviews. I luckily ended up getting selected for the interview on both the preferences which I had opted for namely, NLP and Machine Translation. Both of them somehow related to AI. I also had descent knowledge of NLP.

I waited for more than 5 hours for my turn to come…. and finally I was the last man to be inerviewed. I was interviewd by Prof Pushpak Bhatacharya. By the way, Prof. Pushpak is a stalwart in NLP and has developed wordnet libraries for many Indian languages and also heads the NLP group comprising of IIT-B, IIT-D, IIIT-H and a few more institutes. As soon as I entered, the first thing that was conveyed to me was that its a short interview and will be of not more than5 minutes. The interview generally lasts more than 20 to 40 minutes. I was also told that I had scored heavily in the test. That gave me some confidence. But my confidence came crashing down when a question was asked on recurrence relation and I wasn’t able to solve. I was also asked a question on Generating function and again i failed miserably. Finally, I corrected a couple of mistakes committed in the written test as I was asked to. He did turn up with the question as what was my strong area and I replied confidently “NLP” and my interview ended abruptly after asking my job profile which was then a a developer/researcher in remotely connected to NLP domain at TRDDC….

I had screwed up my interview badly and facial expression was to say it all. Before leaving, Prof did try to console me by telling that the results are not dependent only on interview rather they’ll be also taking into account the GATE rank, test marks and profile. But, i knew i had lost.

After, a week the results were announced and as expected i could not make it.

MS(R) , SERC, IISc[9th june’09]

Next interview I was called for was from SERC , IISc . None of the areas mentioned in the list interested me but still I wanted to face the heat and went for the interview giving my preference as Databases which consisted of XML databases, Query optimization, etc… although not being of my interest . This group is headed by Prof Haritsa and he is considered to be one of the top 3 in Databases in India. I appeared for the test and easily cleared it. There were 5 question and time given was informally 20-25 minutes. The questions were related to Speed-distance, code snippet, Analytical skills. Out of 30 odd, they had selected 3. Soon after the test my interview was taken and most of the answers that came from me were ” I don’t know” as they were specific to database and I hardly had any clue. Also, i didn’t like to do the guess work as it is not advisable during interview. Also, I did enjoy the interview as I didn’t have much interest in joining it. Finally, i was let off in a formal way although it could have been otherwise..worse[kicked.. no…hair-dryer treatment …. save me…]. But somehow, I escaped all these. I really loved the greenery there.

EE, IIT-Bombay [25th june’09]

While applying for IIT-Bombay, I had also written other department mentioning EE and hence, i got a call. I had applied for communications thinking that in case I get “Wireless” specialisation, I would grab it with both hands. I had applied only for communications as there was no point applying for streams which do not interest me much. I wrote the test and again somehow cracked it. There were 25 questions out of which any 20 were to be answered. There was almost equal number of questions in mathematics and electrical related. Surprisingly, I was one of the toppers in the test among communications guys although I didn’t know half of the question paper (I do not know if it was true, but it was as told by interviewers. Many were told same thing and so I dont trust this info). I might have been lucky as there was no negative marking and I had guessed the electrical questions with some intuitions. Anyways, I thought this was my day. I was interviewed by a panel of 5 prof/asst. prof. I wasn’t asked any of the questions on electrical, rather I was asked a couple of linux commands, Mobile adhoc metwork scenarios, networking protocols ARP and my data mining. Data mining and Mobil ad hoc network questions came up due to its mention in my resume. Interview was pretty easy and cool. I was quite confident and answered everything to the point. Although, the interview took around half an hour , I never felt it took more than 5 minutes where as the interview I faced against Prof Pushpak I felt just the reverse(5 min interview as half an hour ). I was confident of my selection but you never know. i finally got the result on 7th July and I was assigned a Project RA in Wireless and Sensor Networking under Professor Merchant. I finally talked to professor about the project and a couple of my friends and finally decide to give a shot.

Here in EE, I realized that Programming is an essential part and not everything. Infact, mathematical foundations are an essential armoury for computer science which I wouldn’t have got, had I joined the CS dept.

But, the path to knowledge becomes more difficult as I also need to cope up with the foundations of EE and Maths at the same time. But, you aren’t well contented unless you do something which is hard to get.

More about GATE preparations and life in IIT will be coming … Keep watching this space

hi,
i am a btech graduate from iit kharagpur.2009 batch.i gave gate in cs this year.if i get a good ranking will i get into iits or iisc…please clarify i am quite confused that sinc ei have given gate in cs and come from ee background,is it the right way…..

hey nice to here your story.I want to know if a rank around 300 in gate can help me to get direct admission in itt bombay,delhi,kanpur,chenni in cs branch or i will defintely need to give the interviews.

Hi,
I am Rohit in final year (from ggsipu university) also a GATE aspirant, but when i decided to appear for GATE it was too late (JAN 2011), so i couldn’t really prepare well for 2011 GATE. I expect to qualify GATE but not with good marks.

The problem: I have accenture job letter. So, i have 2 options either to drop an year for GATE or to join company…
I do not want to be in research or teaching career. but just a degree from a good reputed college. And, I love algorithms, data structure and i am good at programming.

So, kindly suggest me if it is worth dropping an year for GATE or to increase no of years of experience… coz even if i qualify GATE(in 2012) i would have lost 3 years of experience at end of my M. Tech…

There’s a trade-off in whatever you do. You are the best person to decide because you know what you finally want. Is it something temporal or is it on a longer run? One thing is for sure that, You can indeed have a good learning curve if you do your masters and have tools/foundations to take it further. Where as in terms of salary , you never know , which would be higher: complete your masters or after 3 yrs of experience. It all depends on your performance and above all your passion.

You might as well like to consider the option of doing Masters outside India, and work-ex of 1 year would be a plus. You might start preparing for GRE now and write the test in july-aug month and start masters in 2012.

Hi RKM,
Thanks for your reply.
But, I couldn’t completely understand what you meant by “temporal” and “long run”.
Which 1 option would lead to a temporal satisfaction and and other to long run satisfaction?

The thing is i am enthusiastic about doing m tech from IITs. And, the other side of the story is I am kind of scared when i think about “droping an year” for it. Salary wont be a big issue. Issue is even if don’t make it to IITs after an year, then what? And, the other option of GRE is a costly affair.

hi,
i am final year student of computer science and i have been called for GNR branch in IIT Bombay
Could you give me any idea what questions they can ask in interview for GNR branch..
reply soon plzzzz

hey.. m shradha. hav sumwat same story like you. i hav jst completed btech in CS&E and written gate xam in CS. got 98.9 percentile and hav got a call from IITB in Electrical Engineering department-Communication , Microelectronics, Control and Computing. I lyk the 1st 2 fields. now i’l be faced with the written test and intrvw in july so i wanted to know how should i prepare for.
ur suggestions will indeed be vry useful 4 me.hope 2 get a rply frm u soon

I think micro electronics would be very very difficult for you considering your CS background. Communication would be the best. You can really learn a lot of CS fundamentals in Communication. And, hence what you need to prepare is computer networking, some maths especially probability and few application projects. Send me across your resume and I’ll be able to guide you better.
Regards,
Rahul

i am a first year student of cse. i want to know what programming languages i need to learn to clear gate. i want to take up teaching as a profession. kindly help me out as i am confused because there are so many languages

I think you just need to concentrate on 1 procedural oriented language, preferably C. And once you have mastered it , go for 1 OOP language like C++, Java, etc.
Let me know if you need to know the resources for the same.

hii sir ….
i m feeling nice to see your post. I have done M.C.A. from B.H.U. and now i m reparing for GATE-12 . I have one question. Is it written test n interview in all iit after got good score in gate.

Hi there, i am a student of engineering in the stream of electronics. but for some reason i have an interest in computers. and it is still growing. my question is really simple. with me being from EC and interested in computers, is it possible for me to write a the GATE exam with the CS syllabus ? I mean i wish to do my Mtech in CS, so do i have to give the GATE exam in EC or CS ? i really prefer giving the GATE exam in CS rather than in EC. is it possbile ? should i start my preparations in CS ?

I have the similar conditions as Karthikkrishna2012.
I have one more doubt. Do all IITs and IISc Bangalore consider aspirants from EC background who have given CS paper, for admission in CS department… ???
Please clear my doubt….

I have the similar conditions as Karthikkrishna2012.
I have one more doubt. Do all IITs and IISc Bangalore consider aspirants from EC background who have given CS paper, for admission in CS department… ???
Please clear my doubt….

I am just about to start preparation for GATE 2014. I am currently in my 2nd year(CS Branch). I want to know whether Graph Theory would be a good topic to start off with?
Please suggest me the chapters that I need to study from Narsingh Deo OR do I have to study the whole book…? Also recommend a single good book for Discrete Mathematics…Thanks in advance.

I got good cut off marks in TN public exam 196 around…
Pathetically i joined VIT MS(Software Engineering) a 5year integrated programme…
Later i found, it has no value..
Now i eagerly want to write GATE Examination..But i don’t know if i am eligible for it or not..!
Can u please tell me if i am eligible to write??
here in this link http://gate.iitk.ac.in/gate2012/pgadmn.php

I found out this message

The students of Integrated Master Degree and Dual Degree programmes in Engineering/Technology are eligible to appear in GATE 2012 in order to qualify for the postgraduate scholarships in their own institutions only. They are not eligible for admission to a fresh M.E./M.Tech. programme.

You are doing a wonderful job here.I have a query.I am 2011 pass out in cs with just 58% agg in my b.tech.I just qualified gate 2012.I want to give gate 2013 with full preparation
and i think i can score well.my question is that if a manage to get in top 50(just imagine).Can i get into IISC,IIT K or IIT M.I want to go into research field.All i mean to say if i prove in gate will they consider me apart my poor academic record.plz help me.thanking you

I have got a rank of 780 in GATE 2012. I have been called for mtech computational science interview at IISC SERC. But I am more interested in research, do you think I will get a call from SERC for MS(Engg) in Computer systems ?
Do you have any idea about the cut off ? I am preparing for the interview for mtech and they have said i can opt for research too depending on my performance (but this is only MS(engg) in Computational science and not computer systems).

Please help so that I can make the right decision, what is the cut off for MS interviews at IISC ? I have about 2 years of work experience too
I am particularly interested in Databases that you have mentioned in your post.

I suggest you to go for the interview and then during exam/interview you can clarify any doubts you have. In case, it doesn’t fit your goals you can always opt out. I particularly have no idea of the cut-off for last two years so just hope for the call and respond accordingly. All the best!!

Hello
I am in final yr n hv got AIR 120 in EC in GATE 2012. Could you plz tell what r my chances to get direct admission in IITB? I hv filled following preferences:
1) Microelectronics
2) Electronic Systems
3) Communication Engg
Any idea about avg pkg of MTech in these branches from IITB?
Tnks….

Hello Sir
I appeared for gate cs 2012 and Secured AIR 788 with 679 score. I had applied for Mtech in CS, Communication Engg and Control and Automation.
Sir what are my chances of getting call for interviews.
Thanks
Looking forward to your reply

Sir , but I wont be able to appear for interview as interview are scheduled
on 21st May and I have final year examination. And exam cant be postponed. what should I do? Is there any other alternative.
Thanks

Sir, I come to know that most of interviews in IITs are biased towards Discrete Maths,
Probability , Graph Theory and Algorithms.
Other than Kenneth Rosen and Cormen which books Should I follow for the preparation

can you please tell us what kind of questions are asked from discrete mathematics ? I have been studying from Rosen, but I am not sure of what kind of questions are asked in the writte and interview rounds.
Please help

I think you missed the “have not been called” part :)
But I have been called for Communication and Signal Processing(EE1). I just got the mail. Could you help me out with the procedure and preparations, I believe you are also in the same course.
Many thanks.

Hi!
I got AIR 4 (biotechnology stream) in GATE 2012.
I’ve been shortlisted for wriiten test/interview in IIT Bombay for M.Tech Biomedical Engineering. The written test, according to them, should cover mathematics till 12th standard. What topics do they generally include in the test? And also, what would be the pattern of the test?
Best Regards.

Hi!
I got AIR 4 (biotechnology stream) in GATE 2012. I’ve been shortlisted for written test/interview in IIT Bombay for M.Tech Biomedical Engineering. The written test, according to them, would include mathematics till 12th standard. What topics (from maths) do they generally ask? And what would be the pattern of the test?
Best Regards.

You blog is really cool !! exactly what i was looking for.
I got a call from Mtech RA EE and i am also student of CS like u. This year around 1500+ students are called for written test and interview on 7th and 8th june. You have already mention your written test and interview experience, but Can you please Tell me a little more about written test ??? What is exact syllabus or some previous questions :( m very scared n worried being a CS student. What are the topics in maths and electronics should i focus on in these leftover days.

i am really impresses by your blog. I have been called for the written test and interview for spot counselling of M.tech in Aerospace Engineering as I was not able to attend the main wriiten test and interview which was scheduled on 6th May 2012 bcoz of my end semester exams. Kindly suggest me whether i should go for it or not? I am from mechancial engineering (2012 batch). Will aerospace be a good option to do my masters. What are the placement prospects of this branch coz I am not interested in research as of now.

What is the percentage of placements and the average salary? Any info regarding the companies who recruit aerospace students would really help me make the decision. Please reply asap as i have to report there for the tests on 12 July.

Hii…,
I completed my B.E. and M.Tech in Computer Science from BVBCET, Hubli, now I would like to do Phd in Computer science in IITs or IISc but I am not getting which area to be chosen, so kindly suggest me how to select the research area / which research arear to be chosen so that it will be helpful for me in future.

You would first need to find an area that interests you most. No one else can help you on that.
Picking a area based solely on today’s market demand is a short-sighted. Choose something to research in that you genuinely care about.

May be you can call me if any confusion. My number sent on your personal mail . But before calling please make sure you have shortlisted a few areas and you know the reason for this decision.

Pretty bright!! Congos! All the best!
But IISc might not be best in all the subbranches of Micro electronics.
Sent you an email_id from where you can get more detaiils on various specializations. IIT Bombay and IIT Madras are equivalently good. So do apply to that as well.

Sir,
Do you have any idea about the interview atmosphere or question pattern for Aerospace department in IIts, I have secured 199 rank in AE decipline, but scared about the written test and interview..

sir i got 96.22 % (SC category)in Computer science gate 2013 …and applied for few iits and ccmt …so should i wait for call letter or admission or preparing for next year…plz suggest and any other from Ur side…..

Sir,
My GATE 2013 AIR is 755(EC), i hav got call from IIT-Roorkee for counselling from EC Dept and IIT-Bombay EE Dept for RA. Counselling is on 7th jun and test+interview @ IIT-B is on 6th jun.. What shall i prefer?
Do i have chances to get direct admission in Communication @ IIT-R?
n what shall i prepare for written/interview @ IIT-B?

Various criterias in selecting 1 out of 2.
1. How likely is your conversion? If your conversion and preference matches then no issue. But, what if you wanted to get into institute of you having lower chance of conversion? Then, you need to assess that you might miss both. Sometimes its said a bird in hand is beter than 2 in bush.
2. What is your preference?

Personally, I dont see wrong in any of the two and I would have opted for RA @ IITB. But, mind you its my personal choice. Need not be yours.

You could as well write a letter to the other institution about this problem. I have seen people getting interviewed on later scheduled date for these kind of circumstances.

sir i got call from iit roorkee for metrology and materials branch….there is a written test and an interview for selection…what should i prepare for both…my rank is 237 and the branch is industrial enggineering…

Sir,I have also already given the interview of CS RA category………I am a basically a CS guy and I dont know anything about the electronics subjects………Now I also got call for EE department RA so is it worthwhile to attend this……..which subjects they will ask for written and interview….plz reply

Sir
I heared from my friend whose gate rank is around 1500 belongs to OBC and he got seat in IIT Madras for Mtech ece branch.So this year I have written gate I may get around ECE 56/100 is there any possibilities of getting seat in IIT Madras Bombay Delhi Khragpur Kanpor Roorke Gohati for mtech in EE(ECE) branch for Mtech if not mtech at least MS ,RA .

hI I appeared for gate 2013 and acc to that i have a air equivalent to 696 this time.
I am from CS background. n m not at all interested in EE rather i wanna do phd in cryptography, so as i was going through faculty profiles Prof. Virendra R. Sule (http://www.ee.iitb.ac.in/wiki/faculty/vrs) caught my eyes. now i just wanna do mtech in cryptography no matter which dept i have join.
So will it be good if i mail and ask the prof before hand only whether he is interested or not or should i wait for the interview directly.
Please suggest.

Hi sir ,
my rank in gate 2014 is 855(EC) my doubt is in interview how much they ask from the final year project also do the kind of project matter in selection . i am afraid because my project is of very low standard. please guide,,

I am really sorry for not replying as i am not monitoring these pages now. The formats have changed and I am not keeping with current format so I have no clue. Its better not to guide than misguide. Sincere apologies.

Hi sir,your blog is very helpful….
As i got call from iit bombay for CSER dept for Geo Informatics and Natural Resources..pls help me in the preparation of interview as i am from ECE dept,from which branch i may expect the interview questions mostly from EC or a branch related to CSER dept…pls hepl me…

I am really sorry for not replying as i am not monitoring these pages now. The formats have changed and I am not keeping with current format so I have no clue. Its better not to guide than misguide. Sincere apologies.

Sir,
Presently i am in my final year of M.TECH in VLSI Design and have been called for TA / RA category in Electrical Engg. at iit,Bombay….now as there will be a written test followed by interview , i want to know how usually the standard of papers are, i mean the mathematics and specialization part say microelectronics, are those subjective questions of GATE standard ?
and one more thing , what is given importance in selection – are the marks of B.TECH, M.TECH important ? or GATE percentile is important ? or its only written test and interview imp. ?, Plz leave a reply.

I am really sorry for not replying as i am not monitoring these pages now. The formats have changed and I am not keeping with current format so I have no clue. Its better not to guide than misguide. Sincere apologies.

sir i have done m.sc. in molecular biology and biochemistry from gndu in 2012 but with 6.16 cgpa which is approximately 54.82%.can i go for gate 2014 and if yes then what will be the opprtunities in study or job.please answer as soon as possible.please

Sir,
I just graduated in Information Technology. I want to give GATE in 2015 but I am not sure if I would be able get a score required to get into IIT’s. What if I take a gap of 2 years and prepare thoroughly from scratch and get a good score that could help me to get into IIT?? Is this a good idea?? I really want to get into IIT’s as this is the most important thing in my life right now. My academic was not at par. And now i have learnt from my mistakes and now i don’t want to mess it up so I have decided to study and clear my basics and score good score in probably GATE 2016 and get into IIT’s. Will this be a good idea?